


Pokémon Fanweek Prompts

by Corvina_of_Olympus



Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types
Genre: Angst, BW2 Storyline, Bad Pick-Up Lines, Chronic Illness, Fluff, Friendship, Gen, Isshu-chihou | Unova, M/M, Pokemon Mythology, References to Illness, pokemon fanweek
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-02-27
Updated: 2016-03-04
Packaged: 2018-05-23 12:48:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 4,526
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6116956
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Corvina_of_Olympus/pseuds/Corvina_of_Olympus
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>My participation for Pokémon fanweek on tumblr to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the franchise!</p><p>Day 1 (Feb. 27): Then and now / Firsts<br/>Day 2 (Feb. 28): Journeys / Friendship<br/>Day 3 (Feb. 29): “It’s Super Effective!” / Contests<br/>Day 4 (Mar. 1): Cities / Heroes, companions, rivals<br/>Day 5 (Mar. 2): Villains / Nature<br/>Day 6 (Mar. 3): Mythology / Battles<br/>Day 7 (Mar. 4): Crossroads / Favorites</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Day 1: Then and now

**Author's Note:**

> Pokémon was and still is such a big part of my life that I immediately decided to participate. It's going to be a really fun project! ^.^
> 
> Also published on tumblr: http://athenacorvus.tumblr.com/

His breath is heavy from the last obstacle he had to face in order to stand here now.  
The rocky terrain of the victory road with its countless aspiring trainers lies behind him as he revels in the sight of the goal of his journey. The giant castle of the Pokémon League looms in front of him and he stares at the gates breathlessly, full of wonder that he _actually made it here._

The pokéball in his hand trembles with anticipation, its once shiny surface full of scratches telling the story of their journey.  
He lets his partner for two whole years come out to enjoy the view, too.

Charizard, shortly before tired due to all the battles at the victory road, is brimming with energy and fire now and lets out a challenging roar.

His partner is right. The challenge is not over; actually they’re faced with the most difficult part of it right now.  
Instead of being disheartened they anticipate the tough battles in front of them. They want to prove their worth, and nothing in their way can stop them.

He had thought that back then, too, when he was the youngest child in the little village his family lived in and watched others go on their journey, year after year after year. They all came back weeks or months later, discouraged and having given up.  
He had sworn to himself to pull through no matter what, and the little lizard with fire on its tail he received when he was old enough seemed to share his aspirations.  
They had needed two years to get here, and their minds were set on winning the challenge and being the ones that didn’t fail.

They had become strong over these two years, proving themselves in countless tough battles against other trainers. The little Charmander that could only spit little flames and glowing embers at its opponents now had strong, muscular wings sprouting out of its back and his flames were capable of melting rocks. He himself as the trainer guiding his pokémon had also grown. He had encountered dozens of different fighting styles and developed his own.  
His will to win was as strong as it had been two years ago.

His hands are full of burns and scars and tell of the hardships he went through. He balls them into fists and there’s a fire in his eyes as he stares at the stone gates of the Pokémon League with defiance.

“Come on, old buddy” he mumbles and Charizard roars again.  
With certain steps they approach the last challenge of their journey, both remembering every single moment that brought them here.

_We can do that._


	2. Day 2: Friendship

Pidgey is at her side when the doctors tell her the diagnosis, rustling his feathers and cooing softly as if he knew what their words meant and is telling her that “it’ll be fine”. That’s what everyone tells her, too, and she has no reason not to believe it. She doesn’t really know what it means, because she is just a six year old with her pigtails swaying at her side. Mommy tells her that she has to eat fewer sweets in the future, and she pouts at her. Pidgey flaps its wings and flies over to sit on her head, and she laughs instead because the little claws tickle her skin. Her life will change, but it’s fine. That’s what she understood. 

Pidgeotto watches her closely and always reminds her to take her medication when she forgets it. That happens less and less over the years, but Pidgeotto still follows her to school and doesn’t let her go anywhere without him. She doesn’t mind, because he obviously cares about her and she feels safer when the bird Pokémon accompanies her.   
Pidgeotto sits on a branch of the tree outside her classroom when she has classes and excitedly pecks the crumbs out of her lunchbox in the breaks. He still tries to sit on her head sometimes and she has to shoo him off and hold him a speech about the fact that he’s too heavy for that. When she lies in her bed in the evening he often tucks her under his wing until she drifts off into sleep. 

They are inseparable.  
When Pidgeotto evolves into Pidgeot he gets even better at flying than he already was. He is able to support her additional weight on his back with his strong wings now and flying with him is the best thing she ever experienced.   
She knows her limits and always remembers her medication, but Pidgeot continues to watch over her. He is there the first time she confesses her love to someone, hidden between the leaves of a tree and quiet to startle nobody. He quickly becomes friends with her new boyfriend’s Typhlosion and the couple often spends time watching the two Pokémon play together on the fields. 

She doesn’t remember anything about what happened, but her mother tells her when she wakes up in the hospital. The last thing she knows is that she went for a walk and felt very dizzy all of a sudden, and then everything is gone.   
Pidgeot sleeps next to the bed, his head tucked under his wing. She collapsed on her way and Pidgeot carried her all the way to the hospital, her mother explains. He remembered it from all the visits when they were younger. He might have saved her life. Her mother wipes a little tear from her eye and ruffles Pidgeot’s feathers. This wakes him up from his slumber and upon realising that she has woken up, nobody can stop him from spreading his wings and landing on her stomach in a giant heap of feathers. She laughs because his feathers tickle her and scolds that he is “far too heavy for this”, but she returns his clumsy feathery hug with a wide smile.   
“I’m back, my friend. Thank you for everything.” 

And Pidgeot nips her hand as if to tell her to “never be that careless again”. She promises.


	3. Day 3: "It's super effective!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I _tried_ not to include ships... and failed. I never wrote preciousmetalshipping before, but I couldn't help it.

“Hey! Hey! Silv!” 

The redhead turns around to glare at the owner of the annoying voice. “What is it?” he asks in an annoyed tone as the boy with the bright golden eyes catches up to him. The wide smile –no, _smirk_ \- on the other’s face tells Silver that he is in trouble.   
So much for a quiet afternoon. He briefly contemplates calling out Feraligatr and tell him to blow the other boy away with a Hydro Pump, but Gold has already reached him and makes an attempt to lay one arm over his shoulder. Silver violently shrugs it off and glares even harder.   
“Come on, don’t be such a prick”, Gold mockingly complains, still grinning. “Go away and stop pestering me”, Silver growls back. The other actually starts to pout at his words. “I just wanted to ask you if you want to go and drink a coffee with me~ There’s this new café that serves _awesome_ mocha!” He winks at Silver (who totally doesn’t blush, seriously, you must be imagining things). 

It ends up with the redhead actually being persuaded and soon they sit across from each other in a booth with steaming cups in front of them. It is then that Silver notices the golden eyes staring at him.   
“Is something wrong?” he tries to snap at Gold, but his voice has lost its usual bite for some reason.   
“Yes”, the other smirks and Silver knows that he shouldn’t have asked. “Did you use Attract on me? Because it’s super effective!”

Silver has to summon up all of his mental strength to not lean over the table and _strangle_ Gold. Or kiss him. 

_Or both._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Leave the bad pick-up lines to Gold... xD   
> Oh God, this one is so cheesy. I'm ashamed.


	4. Day 4: Cities / Heroes, companions, rivals

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I liked both prompts so much that I simply combined them. :D  
> This isn't really greyskyshipping, because it didn't really fit here for me. So it's just some strong Hugh & Nate friendship. Did I ever mention that Hugh is my favourite character of all times? He is.

He thinks back to all of the places the two of them have visited together. 

_He remembers them running through the streets of Aspertia City, their footsteps loud on cobblestone. They raced each other to the playground when they were children, they sprinted back to Nate’s home whenever his mother made her delicious fresh apple pie, they chased Hugh’s Oshawott, they ran to the Pokémon Center when Oshawott was wounded from a trainer battle and they raced each other one last time on the way to get Nate’s first Pokémon. Being best friends with Hugh included lots and lots of running and chasing and excess energy. Nate considers his best friend (companion? rival?) a challenge in many different ways. Better than him at running, better than him at school, the best trainer in Aspertia City (well, to be fair, he was the only one. But he always won against trainers from Floccesy Town or other places when they came to visit). Not to forget his violent mood swings whenever somebody doen’t treat their Pokémon right or Team Plasma was mentioned. Nate has to take care of him then, even if he didn’t know the cause for Hugh’s behaviour._

_The murky water of Virbank City’s canals comes to his mind and the lights of the Virbank Complex that illuminate the night sky. They are reflected in Hugh’s wrath-filled eyes as the grunts of Team Plasma escape, defeated by their tag-team with Roxie.  
Nate doesn’t want to see them run away ever again. That wish doesn’t fulfil, though, because he has to watch them escape many other times on his journey._

Not this time.

_He nearly gets lost in the streets between the skyscrapers of Castelia City. The high buildings really seem to touch the clouds, making him feel small and insignificant before he fortunately remembers that he saved Hugh’s number in his brand new Xtransceiver. Hugh scolds him for getting lost, but helps him nonetheless. He seems impatient, and Nate figures it’s because Team Plasma has been seen again. After Nate has found his way out of the chaos of streets and alleys with Hugh’s help and meets up with him they chase Team Plasma down to the Castelia Sewers, which are dark and stink horribly, but Nate doesn’t say anything because Hugh seems to not be fazed by it at all. They find the grunts – and watch them run away after their defeat, again. Hugh leaves the scene, enraged; and Nate wants to follow him as fast as possible. But he meets a suspicious man with weird hair and a lab coat then, and when the guy leaves there’s no trace left of Hugh and Nate nearly gets lost again._

_Nimbasa City would have been a positive memory with its lights and attractions and theme parks if it wasn’t for Team Plasma. Nate thinks that their mission probably consists of making his life a mess, but he soon realises that it’s even worse for Hugh. He finally gets to know why his friend can switch from_ ‘I’m completely fine’ _to_ ‘RAGE!!!’. _But what a surprise, Team Plasma once again proves that they are the champions at fleeing and Nate really wants to hug his friend after he sees his devastated expression, but he knows that Hugh would hate it._

_It might be surprising for a person who knows Hugh a little but not as much as Nate does to hear that the event in Driftveil City is the first time Nate sees his friend lose his temper completely and actually physically harm somebody. That somebody is, of course, a member of Team Plasma. Nate is mortified, but before he can intervene the grunt is running from the scene with Hugh giving chase, nose and knuckles bloody. He is left to talk to a member of the old Team Plasma and accompanies him to a house where the rest of them meet under Sage Rood and care for the stolen Pokémon. Hugh returns with a wild look in his eyes, obviously having lost the other grunt. He doesn’t listen to Rood, which surprises neither the former sage nor Nate.  
Hugh has calmed down after winning Turner’s badge and competing at the Pokémon World Tournament, but Nate curses Team Plasma for their timing because of course they have to appear just then with their giant sailing vessel to ruin everyone’s mood. He thinks he could develop some violent tendencies, too, as he sends his Pignite into battle._

_He doesn’t see Hugh for a rather long time after Driftveil. The next place they meet is Undella Town, with the sound of waves crashing onto the shore in the background. They battle with their feet sinking into the sand of the beach and the scent of saltwater in their nostrils. Nate wins.  
Hugh seems strangely satisfied with this. _

_Lacunosa Town is where Nate meets Team Plasma again, and of course Hugh isn’t far. Nate feels very uncomfortable in their tag-team battle against Zinzolin. It is a strange feeling of anticipation for something horrible coming from the sage, but he pushes it away at first to be able to give his all in the battle. Hugh shouldn’t have to lose because of him._

_The disaster strikes in Opelucid City, and while Nate fights more grunts than he can count between giant ice crystals he asks himself why Hugh can’t be where Team Plasma is this one, crucial time. Nate thinks that he might freeze to death in the ice-covered city if it wasn’t for Emboar. He finally has time to call Hugh on the Xtransceiver while chasing the Shadow Triad to retain the DNA splicer, and his friend looks positively mortified at the news. He promises to come to Opelucid as fast as humanly possible. Nate thanks him, white puffs of warm breath clouding the screen of the communication device._  
“Don’t catch a cold”, Hugh says in a gruff voice, but Nate can hear the poorly hidden panic and sorrow.  
“I won’t” he says and ends the call. 

Everything after Humilau nearly passed Nate in a haze. The fight at the Plasma Frigate, Zinzolin, Kyurem, the Giant Chasm, Rood and the old Team Plasma, a new approach of the frigate, Colress…  
But now here they stand, Nate confronting the Shadow Triad with his exhausted pokémon and then… Hugh, defeated, kneeling on the floor with deep, bleeding scratches on his cheeks, in front of the Liepard that used to be his sister’s Purrloin.  
Here’s where Nate stands now, and he realises that once Hugh’s goal is gone, his friend is just a normal person. Nate is the one better at everything now, and he tries to keep his calm while listening to his rival’s, his companion’s, his best friend’s defeated and broken voice speaking a hidden demand to put an end to Team Plasma’s reign. 

Now he has to save Liepard, Kyurem, Unova and Hugh; and he can do all of it at once. He approaches the exit that will lead him to Ghetsis. 

“Nate?” Hugh's voice trembles and he still doesn't move, but Nate thinks that the fire in his friend's eyes is coming back.

He stops and turns around. “Yes?”

“Don’t die out there.”

Nate grins.  
“I won’t.”


	5. Day 5: Villains

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter goes to the villainous team that fascinates me the most: Team Galactic!  
> I tried to write about the fate and motives of a nameless, common grunt, because the perspective of those who are usually unnoticed is always interesting!

As a little child he has always been fascinated by the stars. He used to stay up late against his mother’s demands to go to bed, hands against the cold glass of his bedroom’s window and eyes captivated by the shining lights in the dark blue sky. His parents give him a telescope for his twelfth birthday and a book about the constellations so that their neighbours can see him standing in the garden on mild summer nights, searching the sky for the pictures of animals and myths and ancient heroes embedded into his precious stars. 

He isn’t good at school. He can’t seem to get anything right; the only thing he’s good at is astronomy because he never stops to love the stars. He wants to be an astronaut one day to get closer to them and studies hard, but it doesn’t work. His teachers give up on him, his parents give up on him and then he gives up, too.   
The dream never stops to linger at the back of his mind, even if the telescope catches dust on the top of his bookshelf. 

He is an adult, working a low-wage job as an employee at the Veilstone City Department Store, when he first hears of Team Galactic. Their advertisement is on TV during his lunch break, and the idea of searching the universe for an endless source of energy to improve both humans’ and pokémon’s lifes sounds fascinating.   
‘Recruiting now at Galactic Veilstone Building’ says the advertisement and he doesn’t think about it twice. He pays the building a visit on the following day, and the interview goes flawlessly. The blue-haired young man responsible for the personnel issues (who apparently holds a higher position in the organisation) tells him that Team Galactic would “readily welcome such a determined young man into their ranks” as they shake hands. 

He quits the job at the department store the next day and officially joins Team Galactic as soon as possible. He gets a uniform (most people think it’s weird, but it reminds him of an astronaut suit and that thought comforts him somehow) and an introduction to his first mission, and then they give him a pokémon.   
The Clefairy is the first pokémon he ever trained and he is rather clumsy at the battling that comes with his job, but they get better at it. Clefairy becomes his best friend, and one day he remembers his old telescope and from that moment onwards they watch the stars together each clear evening. He shows his new best friend the constellations he found as a kid and still remembers, and he also shares his old dream of becoming an astronaut with Clefairy.   
The time they spend together is the best of his life, and he thinks that it’s all too good to be true.

He doesn’t notice how his missions get shadier every day, because he’s too captivated by Team Galactic’s prodigious and charismatic leader who goes by the name of Cyrus. His visions are captivating: a whole new universe for the sake of Team Galactic and the world!   
He only notices his wrongdoings because of Clefairy looking sadder every day which makes him question his job. He even thinks about quitting for Clefairy’s sake, but he notices too late that you can’t leave Team Galactic once you’ve joined. He’d also have to leave Clefairy because she still belongs to his employer, so he stays and completes his tasks with clenched teeth. Each time he has to steal a beloved pokémon from its innocent trainer, a little part of him breaks. But he keeps on working, for Clefairy and for Team Galactic’s goal.   
Even if their methods are atrocious, their goal still is to improve the universe for both humans and pokémon. He’s still helping them grasp for the stars.

He meets Clefairy’s former trainer and his world shatters. His best friend had been stolen from her partner, too, and he didn’t notice anything. He watches the trainer hug Clefairy while the latter just watches him with a sad, sad look in her eyes.

He can’t handle it anymore. He runs. 

He witnesses Team Galactic’s operation at Mount Coronet, the reveal of Cyrus’ true intentions and one little trainer stopping the madman from destroying and rebuilding the whole universe to his liking.   
He feels strangely distant from all that, and he doesn’t even see the night sky anymore. All he thinks of is Clefairy, and how his dreams of the stars caused his and other’s lifes to turn into disasters. 

His old telescope is later found at the garbage dump.


	6. Day 6: Mythology

“In a time where the land that nourished all life was set ablaze by the fires of hate and war, two sons were born to a poor farmer’s daughter. The older son was down-to-earth and honest while his younger brother was a little dreamer, full of wonder an ideas of what could be changed in this world.   
Even though they were as different as day and night, the two brothers were united in their striving for a better future for all the people they saw being saddled by war and poverty. 

When they both became adults, the duke of the region they called their home demanded for them to join the army as all adult males had to. They bid farewell to their crying mother with the promise to come back alive, and then they went and entered hell. 

Their days in the army turned into weeks, the weeks into months and the months into years. There were no signs that one side would ever get the upper hand and win the war. It continued to rage over the lands and the two brothers watched with growing desperation. Everywhere they went, people were tired of war. The only ones that wanted to keep the fight going were the ones who started it; the nobles and tyrants that wanted to expand their power and passed that desire on to their children and grandchildren. Hate was born from the wish for more power and the different countries, states, empires and nations were far away from being united. The differences were too great.

But the little brother kept dreaming about uniting all the people who fought each other and create a country where everyone understood each other and the people and pokémon could live in peace. His brother laughed at him for his naïveté, but in his eyes shone the same dream.

And one day, the legendary dragon appeared in front of the two heroes. It understood their strong desire for peace and held the power to make their dream of peace a reality.   
The brothers travelled through all lands, and wherever they went, people would recognise the magnificent power of the ancient dragon and bow to the heroes, tossing their weapons aside and vowing allegiance.   
So came the day that all the countries that used to be at war with each other were united under the banner of the two brothers. They gave the new, united region the name “Unova”, in reminiscence of their dream that all nationalities could understand each other and live in peace.

But that peace didn’t last long. 

The brothers realised how different their visions and approaches were and got into a heavy argument. The dragon beast that had loyally followed them for so long divided into two different dragons, one of them black and one of them white. Each of the twin dragons followed one of the brothers, and the conflict began anew.   
The brothers needed a long time to realise how wrong they were. But when they did, they apologised to each other and the dragon they disunited and stepped back from their position as heroes and rightful rulers of Unova. They transferred their duties to their sons and were never seen again.

But the new heroes didn’t see what their fathers had realised: They, believing that only one of them could be right, sent the twin dragons that were rightfully one into battle against each other again.

The dragons, though, enraged through this unbelievable malefaction, rose to the sky and destroyed all of Unova with their bursting thunder strikes and roaring flames. After the whole region was left in debris, the dragons returned to sleep and took the form of two stones. The heroes finally understood that their views of the world corresponded with each other just like their fathers before them. Unova was rebuilt and peace was established once again.” 

The mother closes the storybook with a sense of finality.   
“That was the last story for today. You should go to sleep now, my child.” She lightly pecks the little boy’s forehead.

“Mommy?”  
“Yes, my darling?”

“What happened to the two dragons?”

“Legend says that they still exist somewhere, waiting for a new hero to arrive whose desire is strong enough for them to accept it and help that person to reach their goals.”

The child looks at her with wide eyes. “But what happens if two heroes awaken the dragons and let them fight each other again?”

The mother smiles. “You don’t have to worry about that. It’s just a legend. Good night, sweetheart.”  
“Good night, mommy!”


	7. Day 7: Favourites

Everyone has a moment where they are the happiest.

For some people, that moment is during a challenge, when they realise that their opponent is tough and will give them a hard time. Moments like these are the ones that fill some people with a powerful surge of energy and they feel as if they can take on the world. Giving their all in a tough battle truly makes them feel alive.

For other people, the best moments are those they spend with their friends, knowing that they will take care of them and the likewise. The feeling of comfort is unlike anything else to them, and they just enjoy not being alone and being cared for. The shared intimacies and deep trust in each other is what keeps them going every day.

To others, happiness means sitting in a nice little café, sipping a coffee and enjoying the company of others, be it humans or pokémon. Even if those other individuals are so, so much different from themselves, they feel like they just… _belong_ there together with them. Having found someone who is willing to spend their life with them fills them with unbelievable joy. 

Some people enjoy discovering the world together with their companions and help where they can. They work hard for every victory to continue their journey, and they watch over their friends that accompany them. Only after many trials and tribulations they realise how strong they have become, and the pride in their companion’s eyes warms their heart and makes them even stronger. 

Other people’s lifes are completely filled by the yearning for something greater, for something higher. Sometimes they allow their desires to grow too much until they don’t acknowledge what they already hold in their hands. It might be too late when they recognise it, but there can be a new start for everyone and maybe the magnificent look of the eternal night sky will give them hope for the future again. 

Many humans are captivated by old legends, fascinated by ancient heroes and great battles that changed the fate of the world. Their admiration keeps those legends alive and sustains their mythical shine. They will keep those beloved stories in their heart as they go through their lifes and maybe one day they realise that they have become legends on their own, too. 

For some people, favourite moments include sitting in their favourite place, be it their room, a café or the bus, and going on adventures in their head. The possibilities are unlimited, and every new story fills them with excitement and joy. Sometimes they will get the opportunity to share their adventures with others and make new friends or keep old ones close.   
For some people, Pokémon can do all these things, whether it has been with them for a long time or they just recently discovered it. 

These stories have been written for all these people.  
Happy 20th anniversary of Pokémon! (And may there be many more favourite moments for all of us!)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wanted to do a little call-back to the previos chapters with this one! I ended it on a rather personal note this time. :)   
> Thank you to everyone who read this, I hope you liked it!  
> And with that, I call this fun little project finished~


End file.
